The Nigerian Senate on Tuesday stopped suspended Kogi Central senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, from entering the National Assembly chamber to attend plenary, despite her claim that a court had reinstated her.
Akpoti-Uduaghan arrived at the National Assembly complex with activist Aisha Yesufu and a group of supporters chanting, “Na our senator be this o, we no get another one.”
But security officers blocked her at the second gate, refusing to allow her inside.
Determined to gain access, the senator left her black SUV and continued on foot, but was still not allowed into the building.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended in May 2025 after she allegedly failed to speak from her assigned seat during a Senate plenary session.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, she said the Federal High Court in Abuja, led by Justice Binta Nyako, had ruled in her favor and ordered her reinstatement.
“I have a court order that says I should be recalled. The suspension is unfair and illegal,” she said.
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However, the Senate disagreed. The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, said the court ruling did not mandate the Senate to recall her.
“Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan is acting on an imaginary order,” Adaramodu said in a statement released on Sunday.
He explained that the court only advised the Senate to reconsider her suspension, calling it possibly excessive, but did not issue a binding order.
“The court gave a non-binding advisory urging the Senate to consider amending its Standing Orders and reviewing the suspension. It did not find any violation of law or constitution by the Senate in suspending her,” Adaramodu stated.
He added that Akpoti-Uduaghan had already filed an appeal and a motion for stay, and so could not claim to have been reinstated.
“It is surprising and legally wrong that she is acting as if a recall order exists when there is none,” he said.